Youth

The sheer number of entries to this invitational is testament to the jubilation and spirit of shared delight that cherry blossom time inspires.

As an antipodean, enjoying the mid-winter gleam of emerging wattle, I would have hesitated to accept the privilege of judging this event, had I not been four times to Japan in cherry blossom time in the last several years, the most recent occasion being in April this year.

With so much said, and written, about blooming cherry trees, it is even more admirable that fine new poems continue to be written, fresh in content and expression.

Some poems immediately tug at the senses of the reader: others emerge more slowly but convince us of their reality, of being true to the moment, with clear imagery, or evocation of sound or other senses.

There is a place for humour. ‘@YVR Status Update …’ is such a poem, but I find it utterly convincing. Having seen whiteboards in hotel foyers that daily document the progression of the blossom front, and photos in newspapers that record the first nudge of buds on cherry trees, this poem recalls the near-hysteria, and anxiety, about whether the season will be a good one, or on time. In another wry take on our modern world, cherry blossoms are sent from an iPhone, contrasting with the joy of actually walking under them. The hunk in the construction yard sweeping blossoms presents another amusing, yet realistic image.

I journeyed through the Tohoku Region in November 2010, only months before the tsunami. I do not think this selection would be complete without a tribute to all those who lost their lives and those who mourn them, and the poem in the youth section beginning ‘draw a heart in the mud…’ does this aptly and with sensitive restraint. We mourn, too, but the presence of the blossom predicates hope and slow healing.

I would like to commend the organisers of the Invitational, who presented the poems for judging anonymously and clearly formatted, accompanied by clear guidelines. A great deal of work goes on behind the scenes when convening and presenting the results of a haiku celebration of this size.

I hope the poems selected for ‘Best of …’ and Sakura Awards, or which achieved an Honourable Mention, will rekindle, or convey, the joy of ohanami for those who read them. More importantly, I hope everyone who themselves penned a poem, or silently composed one in their mind, will recall the cherry blossoms of April 2012, and smile.